C. GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF CHINA PROPER

Province 19: Shing-king [Liaoning]

The imperial province of Shing-king, in southern Manchuria, is bounded on the N. by Mongolia and Tsi-tsi-har; on the E. by the newly-acquired Russia province of Amoor, the Sea of Japan, and Corea; on the S. by Corea, the yellow Sea, and the Gulf of Leaou-tung; and on the W. by Mongolia. It occupies an area of 43,000 square miles, and contains a population of 6,000,000. Its capital city is Moukden (41° 40´ N. lat., 130° 30´ E. long.) or, as it is otherwise known, Shing-king, "the Flourishing Capital," or Shin-yang; and besides this is has one other prefectural city, namely, Kin-chow Foo. The surface of the province is divided between plain and mountain, the latter feature largely predominating. A line drawn from King-chow Foo (41° 12´ N. lat., 121° 10´ E. long.) north-east to Moukden, and then south by west through Leaou-yang and Hai-ching to Kai-chow and the sea, would define the level country, the rest of the province consisting of mountains intersected with valleys. A large portion of the plain being an alluvial deposit is extremely fertile, but in the neighbourhood of the sea that saline exudation so common in the north of China renders futile all attempts at cultovation. To the north and east of this district run numerous mountain ranges, for the most part in a north-and-southerly direction. The climate of Shing-king is marked by extremes of head and cold. In summer the temperature varies from 70° to 90°, and in winter form 50° above to 10° below zero. The mountain scenery is extremely picturesque, and the trees and shrubs are such as are common in England, the mountain ash being the only common English tree which is there conspicuous by its absence. The most important rivers are the Leaou-ho and the Ta-yang-ho. The former takes its rise in Mongolia, and after running an easterly course for about 400 miles, turns in a south-westerly direction, and empties itself into the Gulf of Leaou-tung, in the nieghbourhood of Ying-tsze, up to which town, 20 miles from the bar, the river is navigable for large junks. The Ta-yang-ho rises in the mountains to the south of the plain, and empties itself into the Yellow Sea. The principal roads through the province are—1st. The imperial highway from Peking, which passes through the Great Wall at Shan-hai-kwan, along the shores of the Guld of Pih-chih-li to Moukden, and after leaving this city divides into three branches—one going eastward to Corea, another going by Kirin and Alchuku to San-sing, the limit of the empire in this direction, while a third diverges N. by W. to Fa-kwo-mun, thence through Mongolia to Pe-tu-na, and then to Tsi-tsi-har. Mergen, and the Amoor; 2nd, A road from Ying-tsze southward to Kin-chow, in the extremity of the promontory of Leaou-tung; and 3d, a road from the same point in an easterly direction to Fung-hwang-ching an the Gate of Corea. The Treaty Port of the province is New-chwang, but owing to the difficuklty of reaching this town, the foreign settlement has been established at Ying-tsze. During 1874 the value of goods imported into this port was 2,433,135 taels, and that of exports was 1,753,543 taels. The chief agricultural products of Shing-king are wheat, barley, millet, oats, maize, cotton, indigo, and tobacco. Coal, iron and gold are also found in considerable quantities in various localities, but as yet they are very little worked.






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